ESPNW analyst and US soccer great Julie Foudy breaks down the World Cup final against Japan with The Post’s Justin Terranova.

Q: How did the new formation change the U.S. attack against Germany?

A: Instead of the US chasing the ball — and getting out of form — they had the ball. With five in the midfield they had more options, angles and players close by. This gave them the option to hold the ball, which they have had a hard time doing. It allowed them to move different players forward, like [Megan] Rapinoe and [Tobin] Heath, but you can’t do that unless you have control of the ball.

Q: What took so long for coach Jill Ellis to make the move?

A: The challenge was trying to get Alex Morgan healthy, understanding where Abby Wambach at 35 was at. The good thing was that they did adjust, especially at the center position with Lauren Holiday and Carli Lloyd playing deeper was not working. I give Jill credit for doing that because it’s not an easy thing to do for a semifinal match in the biggest game of her career.

Julie FoudyESPN

Q: What is it like for you watching this being such a part of the growth of the women’s sport here?

A: It’s like the pride of watching your kids grow up. I almost started crying when I heard Abby talking after the game. Here’s a player who has given so much to the women’s game, and yet she’s getting limited minutes, which is the right move, but there’s a lot of superstars who wouldn’t deal with that as well as she has. The first thing she said was, “I am so proud of this team and Jill for making these changes.” I actually texted her right away to tell her how impressed I was with her leadership.

Q: How much does the memory of losing in the finals four years ago play into their mind-set?

A: The first thing Abby said afterward is this isn’t good for us, we aren’t done. Don’t worry about a letdown with this team at all. Especially because all they’ve talked about and remember was that World Cup game ripped from their hands — losing to Japan. This is a team determined to finish it off.

Q: What challenges does Japan bring for the U.S.?

A: Japan is a great technical team. They are like no other on the ball, the way they can move and pass. They are a tough matchup for the United States because you can end up chasing teams like that. For the US, the one positive is that Japan doesn’t seem to have that killer finishes that’s going to put in that second or third goal to put teams away.